He looked angry, his brows came down heavy, and his voice was gruff when he said,
'Now then, kitten, now then. You know who it is right enough.'
She changed her tactics quick, sir. Looked frightened.
She said, 'I do recognize him now.
He comes here sometimes and I've danced with him.
I don't know his name.
The silly idiot must have stuffed his photo into my bag one day.
These boys are too silly for anything!'
She tossed her head and giggled and passed it off.
But it wasn't a likely story, was it?
And I don't think Mr Jefferson quite believed it.
He looked at her once or twice after that in a sharp way, and sometimes, if she'd been out, he asked her where she'd been."
Sir Henry said, "Have you ever seen the original of the photo about the hotel?"
"Not to my knowledge, sir.
Of course I am not much downstairs in the public apartments."
Sir Henry nodded. He asked a few more questions, but Edwards could tell him nothing more.
Chapter 35
In the police station at Danemouth Superintendent Harper was interviewing Jessie Davis, Florence Small, Beatrice Henniker, Mary Price and Lilian Ridgeway.
They were girls much of an age, differing slightly in mentality.
They ranged from "county" to farmers' and shopkeepers' daughters.
One and all, they told the same story.
Pamela Reeves had been just the same as usual; she had said nothing to any of them except that she was going to Woolworth's and would go home by a later bus.
In the corner of Superintendent Harper's office sat an elderly lady. The girls hardly noticed her. If they did they may have wondered who she was. She was certainly no police matron. Possibly they assumed that she, like them, was a witness to be questioned.
The last girl was shown out. Superintendent Harper wiped his forehead and turned around to look at Miss Marple. His glance was inquiring, but not hopeful.
Miss Marple, however, spoke crisply,
"I'd like to speak to Florence Small."
The superintendent's eyebrows rose, but he nodded and touched a bell.
A constable appeared.
Harper said, "Florence Small."
The girl reappeared, ushered in by the constable.
She was the daughter of a well-to-do farmer, a tall girl with fair hair, a rather foolish mouth and frightened brown eyes.
She was twisting her hands and looked nervous.
Superintendent Harper looked at Miss Marple, who nodded. The superintendent got up. He said,
"This lady will ask you some questions."
He went out, closing the door behind him.
Florence looked uneasily at Miss Marple. Her eyes looked rather like those of one of her father's calves.
Miss Marple said, "Sit down, Florence."
Florence Small sat down obediently. Unrecognized by herself, she felt suddenly more at home, less uneasy. The unfamiliar and terrorizing atmosphere of a police station was replaced by something more familiar, the accustomed tone of command of somebody whose business it was to give orders.
Miss Marple said, "You understand, Florence, that it's of the utmost importance that everything about poor Pamela's doings on the day of her death should be known?" Florence murmured that she quite understood. "And I'm sure you want to do your best to help?" Florence's eyes were wary as she said of course she did. "To keep back any piece of information is a very serious offence," said Miss Marple. The girl's fingers twisted nervously in her lap. She swallowed once or twice.
"I can make allowances," went on Miss Marple, "for the fact that you are naturally alarmed at being brought into contact with the police.
You are afraid, too, that you may be blamed for not having spoken sooner.
Possibly you are afraid that you may also be blamed for not stopping Pamela at the time.
But you've got to be a brave girl and make a clean breast of things.
If you refuse to tell what you know now, it will be a very serious matter, indeed very serious, practically perjury, and for that, as you know, you can be sent to prison."
"I -1 don't -" Miss Marple said sharply,
"Now don't prevaricate, Florence! Tell me all about it at once!
Pamela wasn't going to Woolworth's, was she?"
Florence licked her lips with a dry tongue and gazed imploringly at Miss Marple, like a beast about to be slaughtered.
"Something to do with the films, wasn't it?" asked Miss Marple.
A look of intense relief mingled with awe passed over Florence's face. Her inhibitions left her. She gasped,